Genoa-Kingston deals Hampshire 4th loss
If Hampshire's season comes down to needing playoff points, the Whip-Purs should be in great shape.
Friday night it was undefeated Genoa-Kingston on the schedule.
Hampshire stayed with Genoa for a half, but the Cogs wore down the Whip-Purs after intermission for a 31-6 Big Northern crossover victory in Hampshire.
Robert Thurlby ran for 115 yards and 2 touchdowns in the second half and Gabe Williams-Torres returned a kickoff for a touchdown to lead the Cogs.
Chase Lundry, filling in for injured quarterback Bryan Roberts, passed for 38 yards and ran for 81 but it wasn't enough for the Whips to avert their fourth straight loss to open the season.
Mike Kuefner added 78 yards on the ground for Hampshire.
The Whip-Purs' four opponents had a total of 1 loss coming into Friday night.
"The scheduling gods have not been in our favor, but we feel like we've gotten better," said Hampshire coach Dan Cavanaugh.
Hampshire led 6-0 on Lundry's 44-yard run, but the Cogs got it right back when Williams-Torres took the ensuing kickoff 88 yards for a score. Chris Camargo's extra point gave Genoa the lead for good.
"That's a backbreaker right there," said Cavanaugh. "You come down, you work hard, and you get a score, and then that happens. That wasn't the game, obviously, but that sure took the wind out of our sails there."
Hampshire had some kickoff returns of its own. Long returns by Kuefner and Brendan Waterworth set the Whip-Purs up in great field position 3 times, but they couldn't take advantage.
In fact, they scored their only touchdown on a 96-yard drive after recovering a Genoa fumble.
Hampshire moved the ball at times, and stopped Genoa at times, but couldn't do either with enough consistency.
Defensively, Lundry and Glen Buckwinkler were each in on 2 sacks of Genoa quarterback Craig Billington. But when Billington did have time to throw, he completed 4 of 4 passes for 89 yards.
The Cogs' line just overpowered the Whips, especially in the second half.
"We're getting better every game and we just need to keep it up," said Thurlby after the Cogs equaled their victory total of last year with their fourth straight win.